Wrapping apparatus



Dec. 29, 1970 F. D.- c. BATE 3,550,354

WRAPPING 'APPARATUS Filed Feb. 17, 1969 s Sheets-Sheet 1 i INVENTOR:

\ FREDERICK D. c. BATE BY (UO UuA l (ffliwu Dec. 29, 1970 F. D. c. BATE 3,550,354

WRAPPING APPARATUS Filed Feb. 17, 1969 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR:

FREDERICK D. c. BATE BHUW (fi IJ MML Dec. 29, 1970 F. D. c. BATE WRAPPING APPARATUS 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Feb. 17, 1969 V m WW 3 T TIN- l l l IIIL om Wm n u {L E a .3 M NW United States Patent 3,550,354 WRAPPING APPARATUS Frederick Douglas Clavell Bate, Nelson, England, as-

signor to Industrial Developments (Packaging) Limited, Queens Works, Burnley, Lancashire, England, a corporation of Great Britain Filed Feb. 17, 1969, Ser. No. 799,695 Claims priority, application Great Britain, Feb. 17, 1968, 7,864/ 68 Int. Cl. B65b 67/10 US. Cl. 53390 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A device is provided for wrapping articles in a U-folded web of heat-shrinkable film including a swivel mount for a supply roll of film to provide for packaging articles of different sizes by inserting the article at varying angles to the axis of the film. Heat shrinking means are provided to cause the wrapper to conform to the shape of the articles.

The apparatus of this invention has been primarily designed for wrapping bundles of envelopes in the sorting office of a general post oflice, but it should be understood that it can be used to wrap many kinds of goods. The principal virtue of the apparatus is that it can be used to wrap successive packages of different sizes and small bundles of mail which are usually tied with string in a sorting office represent a good example of the situation in which the potential of the invention can be realised.

According to the invention a wrapping machine has a sealing station including a sealing head adapted to seal a package on at least two sides, and a reel carrier adapted for turning about an axis at right angles tothe axis of a reel mounted on it.

The swivel mounting allows the machine operator to pull the wrapping material under the sealing head at different angles to accept different package sizes.

One construction of a wrapping machine will now be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1, is a partly sectioned side view of the apparatus,

FIG. 2, is a diagrammatic plan view of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1, and,

FIG. 3. is a similar view to FIG. 2, but with a reel turned around its pivotal mounting.

Generally, the machine is of a known type, wherein plastic wrapping film (e.g. polyvinylchloride or polyethylene) is drawn off a reel 12 by hand, the film having been folded longitudinally before or during winding on to the reel 12, so that it is drawn off in a double layer, with the fold 11 at the rear. A fixed preparation table is provided. and the film 10 is divided so that the top layer 16 passes over and the bottom layer 18 under the table 14the fold 11 running along the rear edge 22 of the table 14.

The article 20 to be wrapped (in this instance a small bundle of envelopes) is placed on the preparation table 14, and under the top layer 16 of film 10. In the known machine, since the film crosses the table 14 in a straight path, the table is rectangular, but for the purpose of this invention its rear edge 22 is inclined to the front edge 24, so that the table 14 is wider at the side nearer the reel 12 than at the other side, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3.

From the preparation table 14, the film 10, with the envelopes 20 between its two layers 16 and 18, is pulled on to a sealing table 25, the film being positioned under a sealing head 26 hinged along its rear edge 27 to asemi-automatic sealer 29. The sealer head 26 has a front arm 28 extending longitudinally (i.e. in the general direction of travel of the film through the machine) and a "ice transverse arm 30 extending rearwardly from the end of the front arm 28 nearest to the preparation table 14. Each of these arms carries an electrical resistance wire heating element (not shown), so that when the sealer is lowered by the operative into contact with the film on the sealing table 25, the two layers of film, 16 and 18 are fused together and then severed by the wire element. The sealing machine includes an automatic timer (not shown) which causes the sealer to be lifted away from the film when the sealing and severing operation is complete.

The sealing machine is not modified in any way for the purpose of the invention, but it is to be noted that in the conventional method of operation, the sealing machine produces completely sealed rectangular packages, because the rear edge 11 is formed by the fold in the film 10, the front and trailing edges are sealed by the sealer and at the same time the sealer forms a leading edge seal on the film coming from the preparation table 14, ready for the next package.

Beyond the sealing machine, there is a shrink oven 44 through which the package passes on a conveyor 46. This operates in known manner to shrink the film on to the contents of the package, so forming a neat package.

The major alteration for the invention is in the film reel mounting. A carrier member has an upstanding wall 32 at each end, and vertical open topped slots 34 are formed in these walls 32 to receive the ends of the reel mandrel 36. Two rollers 38 are fitted between the walls 32 so that the reel 12 can rest on them and is free to rotate on its own axis to release the film 10.

The carrier has a stub axle 40 which projects vertically below its centre into a fixed bearing 42 so that the carrier can swivel about this vertical axis.

In use, the operator places a bundle of envelopes 20 on the preparation table 14 against the leading edge seal made at the previous operation, and then pulls the film with the bundle inside it on to the sealing table 25. At the same time, the film is pulled forwardly until the front edge of the bundle is only just behind the front arm 28 of the sealer. Thus the film 10 from the reel 12 takes up an inclined position relatively to the straight throng line of travel, and this is permitted by the swivelling of the reel carrier (so that the film still winds off the reel correctly) and the shape of the preparation table 14 (see FIG. 3) the folded edge of the film is drawn out against the rear leading corner of the envelope bundle 20 and then the sealing machine is operated.

The resultant pack has an irregular shape, with two sides at right angles as cut by the sealer, but the other two sides inclined so that there are triangular voids 50 and 52 on the rear and leading sides of the bundle. However, these voids disappear in the shrinking oven and the pack is then neat and tight.

What is claimed is:

1. A wrapping machine having a sealing station including a sealing head for sealing a package on at least two sides, and a reel carrier adjacent said sealing station and means mounting said carrier for rotation about an axis at right angles to the axis of a reel on said carrier.

2. A wrapping macihne as claimed in claim 1, in which said carrier has upstanding lugs, each defining a slot to receive an end of a reel mandrel, two rollers for supporting said reel and extending between said lugs, and a stub axle with its longitudinal axis at right angles to that of a reel on said carrier.

'3. A wrapping machine, as claimed in claim 1, which includes a preparation table, said table having its rear edge inclined to its front edge, said front edge being disposed parallel to the general direction of flow of wrapping material through said machine, and said table being wider at the end nearer to the reel carrier than its opposite end.

4. Wrapping means for wrapping packages of differing sizes comprising a reel carrier, a preparation table, a sealing station and a shrink tunnel arranged successively in a path of travel through the Wrapping means, said reel carrier comprising a base, two lugs spaced laterally of said path and upstanding from said base, each of said lugs defining a slot to receive an end of a reel mandrel, two supporting rollers for supporting said reel and extending between said lugs, a stub axle extending from said base with its longitudinal axis at right angles to that of a reel on said carrier; said preparation table having its rear edge inclined to its front edge, said front edge being disposed parallel to the general direction of flow of wrapping material through said machine, and said table being wider 3,035,381 5/1962 Hosso 53390X 3,214,884 11/1965 Langdon 53182 3,327,451 6/1967 Forman 53-182 THERONE E. CONDON, Primary Examiner E. F. DESMOND, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R.

at the end nearer to the reel carrier than its opposite 15 53 132 

